A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has granted an extension of tenure to Kogi, Sokoto, Adamawa, Bayelsa and Cross River State governors, considering their newly sworn in oath after the re-run elections conducted in the state.




The five incumbent governors of the states, namely: Ibrahim Idris of Kogi, Aliyu Wamako of Sokoto, Timiprieye Sylva of Bayelsa, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa and Liyel Imoke of Cross-River, challenged the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct governorship polls in their states next year while, according to them, their tenure is still running.

They also asked the court to stop the People's Democratic Party (PDP) from conducting any primaries for the governorship elections in their states.

Though the primaries have been conducted and names of the candidates submitted to the electoral commission, the presiding Judge, Adamu Bello, in his judgment ruled that so far that the elections in the states have been nullified and fresh elections conducted and new oaths taken, the governors' terms effectively begin when they took their oath of office.

However, in the recently amended 1999 constitution, Section 135 of the principal Act which affirms on the issue of governors' tenure is altered in subsection (2) by inserting a new paragraph c, and states that, "in the determination of the four year term, where a re-run election has taken place and the person earlier sworn in wins the re-run election, the time
spent in the office before the date the election was annulled, shall be taken into account."

i thought the nigerian constitution outlines a 4-year tenure, why would these political gluttons want to have 5 or more years by default? What are these federal high court judges telling us?

It is becoming clear that we lack direction in this country. Democracy seems to be failing us. These selfish people will soon tear NIGERIA into shrades

All hail the animal farm called ''one niGERia''

interesting

A flavour to Naija's 'demallcrazy'.

Was that of Delta state included

This is a prelude to the crashing of our democracy, if the judiciary is corrupt then there is surely no hope for us.

Only in Nigeria.

Just confirmed it, there will be no elections in Delta state dis year 2011, as ruled by the court, my question is in the re run governorship elections which Emmanuel Uduguan won, was it the old or the new electoral law that was used

This is a very sound judgment, we should applaud the judge for the correct interpretation and INEC is really clueless to say the truth.

IVORY2009:

Just confirmed it, there will be no elections in Delta state dis year 2011, as ruled by the court,  my question is in the re run governorship elections which Emmanuel Uduguan won, was it the old or the new electoral law that was used 

Nah it was under the new one so there will surely be elections, these governors were judged by the old electoral act.

Its good that the constitution has been amended as it concerns rerun election, if not it would have become a new way of corruption, sponsor the cancellation of your election and win the rerun to extend your term. Nigerians so creative

Pharoh:

This is a very sound judgment, we should applaud the judge for the correct interpretation and INEC is really clueless to say the truth.

Nah it was under the new one so there will surely be elections, these governors were judged by the old electoral act.

That's true u are correct, it was the new electoral law that was used.

Let hav uniformity

Jeel:

Let hav uniformity

in waht sense?